Kurt Zouma, a West Ham midfielder, has been fined two weeks’ wages by the club after a video surfaced of him kicking and slapping his pet cat.
In the video, Zouma can be seen kicking the cat, slapping it, and chasing it around the house.
The video drew widespread condemnation in the English media, and the defender was fined for two weeks as a result.
ATTENTION: Click “HERE” to join our WhatsApp group and receive News updates directly on your WhatsApp!
Zouma, who earns £125,000 per week, will forego two weeks’ pay, totaling £250,000.
While some suggested that the France international should have been suspended, he played the entire 90 minutes of West Ham’s 1-0 win over Watford last night.
The club was heavily chastised for fielding the player in the midst of the controversy, and calls for his dismissal from the club continue to grow.
Former Premier League goalkeeper Chris Kirkland agreed, saying Zouma should be treated the same as those who racially abuse players because the cat was defenseless.
The club stated that it has fined the defender the maximum amount allowed by PFA rules, which is two weeks, and that the money will be donated to animal welfare charities, despite the fact that the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, RSPCA, has now taken possession of the cat.
“West Ham United can confirm that the Club is supporting an RSPCA investigation into the actions of Kurt Zouma in the video circulated online this week,” reads a statement on the club’s website.
Kurt and the Club are fully cooperating with the investigation, and the player has willingly complied with the initial steps of the process, including delivering his family’s two cats to the RSPCA for evaluation.
Kurt is deeply sorry and, like everyone else at the Club, understands the depth of emotion surrounding the incident and the need for action to be taken.
Separate from the RSPCA investigation, and pending the outcome of that process, West Ham United can confirm that Kurt Zouma has been fined the maximum amount possible for his actions. The fine was immediately accepted by the player, and both he and the Club agreed that it would be donated to animal welfare organizations.
“West Ham United would like to reiterate our condemnation of Kurt’s actions and make it clear that the matter is still being treated seriously.”
However, we believe it is now critical to allow the RSPCA to conduct their investigation fairly and thoroughly, and we will make no further comments at this time.”
In a related response, Vitality, the club’s sponsor, has suspended their sponsorship, condemning all forms of animal cruelty.
